Bed and cylinder multicolor printing press



July 24, 1951 1.. w. CLAYBOURN ETAL BED AND CYLINDER MULTICOLOR PRINTING PRESS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 16, 1949 Pica. Z

N A'rfoaucvs y 3 1951 w. CLAYBOURN ETAL 2,561,908

BED AND CYLINDER MULTICOLOR PRINTING PRESS 4 Sheets-Sheet s Filed May 16, 1949 Patented July 24, 1951 BED AND CYLINDER MULIICOLOR PRINTING PRESS Leslie W. Claybourn, Carlton (llayton Claybourn, and Paul R. Franzen,- Chicago, Ill., assignors to L. W. Claybourn, Inc., Chicago, 111., arcorporation of Illinois ApplicationMay 16, 1949. Serial No. 93,488

The invention relates to multi-color printing presses.

'Ihe general object of the invention is to provide a multiple color printing press of the flat bed type in which the printing plates are successively advanced beneath the impression cylinder.

A further object of the invention is to provide a flat bed multi-color printing press of compact form in which the width of the press is determined by the width of the plates, the plates being moved out of printing position into a plane beneath that occupied by them when in a printing position, thus conservin considerable floor space and also simplifying the transfer of the plates into and out of printing position.

A further object of the invention is to provide a plate feed mechanism for a flat bed multi-color printing press in which the plates move in spaced vertical planes and positive feed means are used to transfer the plates from one plane to the other.

A'f'urther object of the invention is to provide a plate feed mechanism for a flat bed multi-color printing press in which'the plates are positively fed along guides arranged in spaced vertical planes. or runs and are lowered from the upper run after the printing operation to the lower run and then raised from the lower run to the upper run to repeat the printing operation.

'The invention further consists in the several features hereinafter set 'forth and more particularly defined by claims at the conclusion hereof. In thedrawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation view of a multi-color printing press embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

.Fig. 3 is a detailed horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 4 is a detailed horizontal sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

-Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are vertical sectional views through the plate feed mechanism, somewhat schematic in character to show the action of said plate feed mechanism, parts being broken away and parts being shown in section;

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 9 is ,a vertical sectional view taken on the line 9-5 of Fig. 4.;

Fig. 10 is a detailed vertical sectional view taken on the line Ill-H1 of Fig. 3, parts being broken away.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 shows ageneral layout of. the multi-color printing press embodying the invention, said press including a sheet feeding 2 Claims. (01. 101-189) cylinder ,1 I, an impression cylinder l2 and a deliveryc'ylinder l3, the feed of the sheet to the cylinder H not being shown. The plate feed mechanism designated generally by the numeral 14 moves the printingplates l5 successively under a series of inkers l6 whose operations are so timed that each platereceives its desired color of ink. and isthereafter carried under the impression cylinder It" to deposit its inked portion upon the sheet carried thereomthe press shown being a live color press and having a plate storage compartment l1.

The invention herein is not concerned with the drive and control of theimpression cylinder and its feeding and delivery cylinder, but it is to be noted that the impression cylinder makes five revolutions, one for each plate, before the printed sheet is delivered therefrom. The invention herein relates particularly to the positiv and continuous feed of the printing plates 1 5 to and from the impression cylinder.

Referring to Figs. 3 to 7, each printing plate I5 is provided at'its sides with a series of pins 18 which formr ack teeth that are adapted to mesh with a series of plate drive gears l9 mounted on spaced shafts 20 journalled inbearings inside frame members 2 I, each shaft 20 carrying a bevel gear 22 meshing with a bevel gear 23 on a lengthwise extending lay shaft 24 journalled in bearings 25 iatthiesides of an outer frame 28, said shaft 24 being driven at one end from an extension 21 of one of the shafts .20 which carries a, gear 'iflmeshing with a gear 29 on a shaft 30 which gear in turn meshes with a gear 3| on a main drive shaft 32 that carries a'set of the gears I9 and also carries a sprocket 33 connected by a chain 34 with a sprocket 35 on the shaft of the press drive motor 36, the shaft'32 being geared or operativelyconnected to the impression cylinder drive mechanism, so that impression cylinder and the plate drive mechanism will operate in proper synchronism. The plates I5 at their top sideportions are each provided with racks 31 which when said plates come under the impression cylinder l2 mesh with gears l2 on said cylinder so as to secure absolute synchronism betweensaid cylinder and each plate as it passes thereunder.

Eachplate l5 also has a pair of guide rollers 38' at'its front and a pair of guide rollers 39 at its back, the rollers 38 being disposedfarther from the sidesof' the plate than the rollers 39, as clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The frame members 2| havelongitudinally extending upperchannels .40 ,and similar lower channels connected at their'ends by arcuate channels 42 and 43 and the sections of the channels 49 and 41 between the channels 43 and 45 are a depth to take the rollers 39, said last named sets of channels for the rollers 39 being shallower than those for the rollers 38. The above named channelsnform tracks by which the plates i are guided along their upper and lower runs into and out of printing position and transfer tracks bywhich said plates are bodily guided downwardly from the upper run to the lower run at the printing end of the press and upwardly from the lower run ink on the sheet on said inder revolves in printing registry therewith, and

to the upper run at the opposite end of'said 1 press, the transfer of the plates from the upper to the lower run being made after each plate has passed under the impression cylinder.

Whilethe gears l9 meshing with therack pins 18 are so spaced that one gear. is always inen gagement with a. plate and acts to' positively move'or advance the plates l5 along the tracks or channels All and 4| when the plates reach the ends of these tracks and are ready to .move at the forward end of the press along the arcuate channels 42 and 44 and at the rear end thereof along the arcuate channels 4?, and 45, they are positively moved through these cross or connecting channels by single toothed gears for the channels 43 and 45 and a similar gear 41 and a special movable jaw gear for the channels 42 and .44, respectively, it being noted that a gear similar to the gear 4'! could not be used at the rear ends of the plates while the rollers 38 are passing along the tracks 45 because such an open toothed gear would permit the back end of the plate to be tipped and prevent the rollers 39 from entering the tracks 43 since said rollers could continue along the deeper track section 40, and also if the rollers 39 did get into the tracks 44, they might drop free of the toothed drivers at different times, thereby throwing the plate out of the horizontal alinement that must be maintained for it in its transfer from the upper to the lower run. These considerations do not apply when the plate is raisedbecause the rollers 39 are then the advancing rollers, and the rollers 38 are the rearwardly disposed rollers, and as the trackv beyond the transfer section 45 is not deep enough to accommodate the rollers 38, these rollers have to follow the track 45 as the plate I5 is moved upwardly by the gears 46. The movable jaw gears for. engaging the pin ends. of each of the rollers 39 to insure their positive feed along the track 44, each include a drive plate 49 mounted on the shaft 32 and carrying a pivoted jaw 50 and a pivoted jaw 5i operatively connected together by a link 52, the jaw 5i carrying a cam roller.54 working in a slot 56 in the plate and urged by a spring 53 against a fixed cam 55 which at 58 is fixed to the frame of the machine, so that as the plate 49 is revolved by the shaft 32, the roller 54 moves about the face of the cam 56 to open and close the jawsell and 5| at the proper time.

The single toothed gears 41 are mounted on a shaft 59 which carries gears Gil connected with gears 6| on the shaft 32 by idlergears 52 on a shaft. 63, see Fig. 4. I

The single toothed gears 46 adjacent thetracks 45 are mounted on one of the plate feed gear shafts 20 and driven thereby while the gears plate into 46 on the shafts 64 for advancing the rollers '39 through the tracks 43 are driven from the same shaft 20 through connecting gears 65, 6B and 61, see Fig. 3.

With the construction above described, the gears 19 positively feed the plates l5 along the upper track 4il past the inkers l6 and iinder the impression cylinder i2, each plate depositing its cylinder as said cylis posiand 44,

after the printing operation each plate tively moved in the arcuate tracks 42 .while in a maintained horizontal position, down to. thelower track 4! where it is again moved positively in a rearward direction by the gears i9 until it comes-to the arcuate track sections 43 and 45 where it is raised by the gears 46 to the upper track level to again repeat its forward movement along the track 40.

It will be noted from Fig. 1 that a complete set of plates l5 may be deposited on the upper run of the conveyor to receive five colors while another complete set of five plates may be disposed on the lower run of the conveyor to receive five colors, so that for one complete run of the plate feeding mechanism two sets may be printed which results in increased output for this printing machine as compared to others and which permits printing two color jobs in the machine at one setting of the same.

With the foregoing arrangement in which the back ends of the plates in their printing position are positively gripped by the cam controlled movable jaw single toothed gear for the movement of said plate from printing position on the upper track throughthe arcuate slots to a position for return on the lower track, each plate is separately handled by this mechanism so that any number of plates may be used in the press as distinguished from constructions heretofore proposed in which mechanism acting on the plates was such that it required that the plate beds be arranged in multiple, and special switch mechanism for bringing the back end of the forward the arcuate grooves for transfer from the upper track to the lower track is not required.

We desire it to be understood that this inventionis not to be limited. to any particular form or arrangement of parts except in so far as such limitations are included in the appended claims.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. In. a multi-color printing press having an impression cylinder and a plurality of inking mechanismsthe combination of a printing plate for each of said inking mechanisms, vertically spaced horizontally disposed grooved tracks for supporting and guiding. said plates and along one of which said plates are carried past said inking mechanisms and said impression cylinder, arcuate spaced grooved tracks connecting the ends of said horizontally disposed tracks and intermediately disposed arcuate grooved tracks spaced a plates length apart from said first namedtracks whereby the plates are transferred at the ends of their movement along one of. said horizontally disposed tracks to the other horizontally disposed track, rack means on each of said plates, gearing engageable with said racl: means for positively moving said plates along said horizontally disposed tracks, revoluble single tooth gears engageable with end portions of said plates for carrying the plates along the sets of arcuate tracks formed by said connecting arcuate tracks and said intermediately disposed tracks in a substantially hori;

zontally disposed position, the end portions of said plates having rollers running in said tracks and the rollers at the front end of each plate projecting farther from the plate than those at the rear end, the set of single tooth gears engageable with therear end portions of the plate having releasable gripping jaw portions for carrying the rollers at this end of the plate through the intermediately disposed grooved track at the forward end of the machine and preventing tipping of the back end of the plate as it is transferred from the horizontally disposed track, and means for positively closing and opening said jaws during the movement of the rollers at the rear of the plate through the intermedially disposed grooved track at the forward end of the machine.-

2. A multi-color printing press having an impression cylinder and a plurality of inking mechanisms, the combination of a printing plate for each of said inking mechanisms, channels form ing vertically spaced horizontally disposed tracks for supporting and guiding said plates and for wardly and rearwardly disposed arcuate spaced channels at the ends of said horizontally disposed tracks forguiding said plates from one horizontally disposed track to the other, said plates having rollers at the end portions thereof movable in said channels and the rollers at the front end of each plate projecting farther from the plates than those at the rear end, rack means on each of said 3 plates, gearing engageable with said rack means to positively move said plates along said horizontally disposed tracks, revoluble single toothed gears for carrying said plates along said arcuate tracks, one set of single toothed gears having releasable gripping jaw portions engageable with rear end portions of said platealined with the sets of rollers at this end of the plate to positively direct this set of rollers downwardly along the rearwardly disposed set of arcuate slots at the printing end of the machine and prevent tipping of the back end of the plate as it is transferred from the horizontallydisposed track, means connecting said jaws together for simultaneous movement on the movement of one of said jaws, and a fixed cam engageable with one of said gripping jaw portions for positively closing said jaws to a gripping position whil the plate is moving from one horizontal track to the other and for positively releasing said jaws from said plate when it alines with said other track.

' LESLIE W. CLAYBOURN.

C. CLAYTON CLAYBOURN. PAUL R. FRANZEN;

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

